July 7, 2023
Passage Read: Matthew 7-8
Meditation Verses: 7:1-5
Thought
It seems the safest path is to never judge anyone, just speak truth without applying it specifically to anyone. But verses like Leviticus 19:17 imply that not rebuking your neighbor is to hate them and also to share in their guilt. Even here, Jesus goes on to imply that we should be helping each other with our sins, but the safest way to do that is to recognize that my sin is always far worse than your sin. And to recognize that I need the help of others more than they need mine.
Application
That last one is hardest, because it seems so few people know God well. They know various forms of Christianity, their particular traditions and ways of living, but not God. It's like God can't really be known. And in days like these, I feel like I don't even know Him. Can I really know Him or am I just fooling myself? And if we can't really know Him, then how can we know what He wants and what we should check each other on? It becomes a free-for-all, every man for himself; no one can speak authoritatively because there's no sure thing. No wonder so many abandon the faith, because they see that Christianity is still just every man doing what's right in his own eyes. I can't go there. Scripture is authoritative, and we need to be calling each other to its standard. Even I need to be willing to hear correction and submit to God's Word.